PB1230

Archie had like 7 unfilled roster spots over the span of his 4 years, and was seemingly struggling to get what he did. Archie was never in position to churn and push out players.

But the school's name only matters because the players past and present whose NIL up until now were controlled by the school. And what logical rationale is there for a school to stop offering scholarships, even if certain players might have the ability to earn enough to pay for tuition?

Though that’s sort of the point, maybe there hasn’t ever been a true scholarship offer yet, and the staff has been telling him all along that one could become available dependent on other decisions. As long as the staff has been open and straight forward with everyone, I don’t see it as a big deal if a plan is still evolving

Based on the weird timing of the top 5 tweet after he'd already been on some visits suggests that he had maybe been on the verge of committing earlier but had to switch gears. Either the spot was no longer available or he was told he had to wait and he had stall and/or start exploring other options. For example, when Dennis scheduled his visit with IU, there was a clear opening since Reneau had yet to commit, and when Dennis visited, the staff may have still been unsure about JG's status. IU's staff might still want him and he still might want to commit, but the staff might want to figure out the logistics of the roster spot first. Had IU lost on Reneau or JG, no such logistics would have been needed

While I think that Bates and Geronimo both have a chance of being a starter, I think its a bit of a longshot that both start, but would be great if both do so. Both just have a few too many things to develop, that the odds of both doing so seem a little slim. My guess is that it would be JHS/Bates at the 2/3 spots

7 years, but only 5 were at IU

But it’s not state money though, the athletic department just funnels tv/ticket revenue and donation money (from the same boosters that are contributing to NIL deals) to the university for tuition.

Yep Purdue lost a ton of production from ‘19 to ‘20 and would have missed the tournament that got canceled because of COVID even with some decent but inexperienced talent on the roster (Williams, Stefanovic, Hunter). Unless they get a major upgrade at guard in the portal, this could be a really rough year even with their post talent.

No, but the CEO doesn’t make 100 times all other employees combined, and that’s what we are talking about

In name only because the profits say otherwise.

Were they compensated on some level, sure but as a share of revenue, you are probably talking 50-100 times less than professional athletes

Also, it’s more than just a few hundred dollars. I would say even a guy like Leal was probably making at least $10-20k

If you are concerned about amateurism in college sports in general, it’s infatuation built on false pretenses. The whole concept initially began as a way for mediocre rich guys to maintain ability to play at a prominent level and stuck around for the ability to exploit and profit off of athletes. if you are concerned about competitive advantage concentrating to top schools, we are really only turning back the clock 20 years on gains in parity

Sure, but the context with what you initially said suggested that IU was trying and failing to raise money and get it to players, and that changed because of Woodson

Meh, while certainly money was exchanging hands previously, there were logical and justifiable reasons to avoid getting involved in that. Plus even the money caused the issues with Zion was small potatoes compared to some of these NIL deals. So to say IU had fallen behind isn’t really accurate statement

When did IU fall behind in NIL??? Woodson has been at IU longer than NIL has been in effect.

Yep and that 11th place finish was just 3 years ago, and came on the heals of losing 75% of their scoring. As it stands now, Purdue has lost 67% of its scoring, and the only returning major scorer will at best give them 25 minutes of solid play a game, but actually probably less than that.

Yeah, right now, their only returning guards are Morton and Newman and Painter has almost always gone with a 3 guard lineup, with the major exception being the few years they had Vincent Edwards and Swanigan. But I don't think Purdue has any forward that can play the 3 spot.

I'm also starting to think that TJD could be the most likely candidate to pay his own way. He has until June 1 (10 days after combine) to pull his name out of the draft and retain NCAA eligibility. If he stays, he would want the best possible team around him. If he leaves, he wouldn't want to put Woodson and the team in a bad situation not having had the chance to fill his spot. He has already earned more than enough NIL money to cover tuition/etc, and he would be the one assuming the risk to test the waters with the NBA, and that cost might be worth it to him maximize his NBA chances.

Although, JG has 3 years of eligibility remaining, and Kopp/Dennis/Race would all be gone after next year. Assuming TJD is only back one more year, Reneau is likely to get most of his minutes at the 5 after that. Worst case is JG gets stuck in a minutes log jam this year, but is still a likely front runner for a starting spot at least one of the 3/4 spots his last 2 years.

I do think there are some restrictions about a player on an academic scholarship being allowed to be a walk on, though not sure on the exact details. Its think its something along the lines of: if you have been recruited as a potential athletic scholarship player, you have to be counted against the team scholarship limit if you are receiving any financial support from the school. I think it's prevent schools getting around scholarship limits by doing some creative accounting by saying that the money is coming out of a different pool/account than athletic scholarship money. I think you can still pay your own way, but the vague nature of all this has just created confusion about what is or is not permissible

I do think this is something where Woodson's NBA experience is helpful. Managing team chemistry after departures and new additions is a necessary component of the job in the NBA. A well-liked, productive, and integral player can even be shown the door mid-season, even if they have been with the team for years.

I think the point is that all the stats you cite would drop substantially if JG gets moved out of the post. Also, for all of JG's athleticism, he actually doesn't great lateral quickness or footwork which hurt him when guarding on the perimeter

that had no advance notice about half the team being out and no chance to develop a game plan to attack/defend JG at the 3

Also for all we know, both coaches were working with JG in practice (surprising concept for some) on things that would prepare him to more effectively play the 3 and he just wasn't fully picking those things up. In which case, playing experience in real games won't really get him up to speed either.